Kids Category Archives

We spent the afternoon walking around Cannes (it moved up to one of my favorite destinations in the South of France)- but you had to see the happiness of the children when they kicked off their little shoes and started to DANCE IN THE SAND !!!

It was like the sand was magic dust and they rolled in it, played in it, danced in it-sprinkled it all over their legs and each other. They were running and laughing, digging out the sand, putting their toes in the water.

I love to see my kids so happy and enjoying the beauty of nature. It made me want to live somewhere close to the beach.

We strolled through Cannes- so fun for shopping by the way. Beautiful shops and boutiques.

I bought a pair of gold flat shoes, a pair of pink Mary Jane flats, and a couple of little gifts for the kids.

The vibe is laid back but preppy. People look really nice but not over done. There is an easy going atmosphere in the air. Everyone seems happy, and always has a sweet and kind word for the kids.

We had absolutely no difficulty making our way through the town. I love how you can go from pretty little shopping streets and boutiques to being right on the beach with sand in your toes.

It also feels so good to stroll, and walk. People watching is also fun, the crowds are stylish and cosmopolitan. It’s also such an international community, a sea of accents and cultures.

This is definitely one of the things I miss most about Europe, being in a place where there is a mix of different people from different places.

I can’t wait to go back to Cannes, and I think the children feel the same. Unlike other years in the past, this year doesn’t feel as congested as year’s past, and not as hot either.

I absolutely love being outdoors so much. We eat outside, read outside, hang out, I even caught up on some work outdoors. It’s so pretty and liberating. Makes you really reflect on how much time we spend indoors on a typical day…

I was searching high and low for something that was all tucked in. No need to be spilling out of my bikini while chasing kids around the pool-if you know what I mean. The last couple of years I’ve worn one pieces but they always seem sort of prudish and matronly. Although Target now has some cute ones, and I think one pieces are back in style-luckily.

I would dare to say that the swimsuit style of the season is the high waist bottoms. Two pieces but the bottoms are boy cut and cover the belly button.

I think that this is such a cute look. It hides enough and covers enough. I’d also say that this is such a flattering look for all shapes and body sizes.

The Pak Pakhas some sales going on and they have these cute little ruffles right on the waist line.

I loved it so much I bought it in two colors. I’ve seen girls mix and match the tops and bottoms too which is also a fun idea.

I may not wear this style forever but right now, I still am not in my happiest body shape so this a God send till I am back where I want to be.

Angelina is almost 20 months old!! So, I thought it might be fun to do a milestone post today!!

Mentally she surprises me every single day!

Already, she can speak a handful of words:

Mama + MOM!

Dah (Daddy)

Ball (Annabelle)

Oufff (dog)

UP!! (self explanatory)

Ya?!

Nooooooo…

Hiyyyyeee

Byeee

Pop (lolly pop)

App (Apple Juice)

Physically, Angelina can run after Annabelle and Alexander, feed herself with a spoon or fork- with almost no spills. She loves to color with markers- particularly NOT on paper ? I’ve even caught her trying to roll by on her scooter.

When I ask her where something is, she does the cutest little shrug with her shoulders and opens her hands out in front of her ??‍♀️. hehe.

She mainly loves to tag along with Alexander. I think these two are really close buds. Wherever Alexander is, Angelina is pretty close behind. She’ll even play cars with him.

Angelina’s two favorite places to be right now are at the playground and at the swimming pool! She loves bing in the water.

One thing she doesn’t like…The vacuum!!

Angelina seemingly understands a lot of what’s going on around her. If I’m in the living room, and I ask her to throw something away, she’ll grab the item and dash off into the kitchen to find the garbage.

Today we saw a bird at the park and I said,”give the bird a piece of your pop corn”.. And she DID!

When Angelina is hungry, she pulls me ” up” and points the direction with her finger all the way to the kitchen. Then she’ll try to open the fridge. Luckly she hasn’t mastered this skill yet but she will point to what she’d like to eat in the fridge and if I chose the wrong thing she says,” NO!!” ? She definitely knows what she wants and I think that’s an excellent quality to have. Even if she is very bossy!!

As far as potty training goes I now understand parents that start the transition early. I bet I could get Angelina to start the first steps any day. When she has a dirty diaper I ask, ” do you have a poo poo?!” She nods. Then I follow her all the way to the changing table!!

Thank you so much to Bohobee Design for these stunning custom made dresses for the girls. If you are looking for special dresses for your little one or a little girl that you love I cannot stress enough how much we love these pieces. They also make wonderful “Mommy and me” dresses if you want to match. Great for weddings, birthday parties and summer!

On this special day I can’t help but reflect on the moment you were brought into the world.

We knew that you were coming on May 25th, because we had scheduled a C-section for that morning.

Why a C-section?

2 weeks before you were born we had a standard routine ultrasound to make sure everything was ok, and they discovered that you were Breech ( a position where the baby’s head is not pointing in the downward position). According to our Doctor, there is a universal agreement that 100% of breech baby cases should be delivered via C-section. If you pull the baby out by the legs the baby’s head could get stuck, lose oxygen and suffer trauma to the brain.

How did I feel about this?

Bad. I was desperately hoping for as natural of a birthing processes as possible.

Good. Because I could organize myself to anticipate that date and time and not worry about being on my own + unprepared for the unpredictability of a natural birth.

Fast forward to the big day:

I wore a bright yellow shirt, my mom, Michael and I WALKED a mile to the hospital. We were so excited. It was a beautiful and sunny Spring day in London. The city was just waking up and was sparkling.

( 3 days later I would walk the same route home a mother + my brand new baby!!)

Laying out on the operating table was very unnerving. I was anxious and worried. A lot of tugging and pulling later… and THERE SHE WAS!! They dropped the curtain and this wide-eyed, teeny tiny little body, with steel-sharpe blue eyes- was scanning the room!! Oh my goodness. I burst right into tears, I was so emotional. There she was this wonderful little thing. In my arms.

She never left my side, as they wheeled us into our room. I stayed up all night. The nurses came in and told me- “you should get some sleep”, and “sleep when the baby sleeps”. Who could sleep?! I just looked at her, and hoped that she would wake up ?

I didn’t leave my bed for days, until finally the nurses convinced me to wheel Annabelle into the nursery for a bath. They were playing the Spice Girls in the room! All the other little babies were there and I was so surprised to see how tiny Annabelle was compared to them.

I struggled with nursing in the beginning and I had no idea what I was doing. I felt a lot of pressure because she seemed so little, and I didn’t feel like she could afford to lose any more weight. My breasts became engorged and I went from discomfort to pain and stress. Luckily it was time to go home, which allowed me to take some time to figure out a rhythm and find my stride.

Nursing was my number one stressor when I had Annabelle. I had no idea what to do. Very few of my friends at the time had babies themselves and I didn’t know any that were nursing.

My mom really encouraged me to continue and I ended up breastfeeding exclusively for 6 moths. I am very proud of myself to this day, because this was one of the most difficult times of my life as a mother. Read Alexander’s birth story here!

Today, I have my now Second Grade princess!! I love and adore her fun and smart sprit.

We are all about making easy, non messy and healthy meal options right now. Gerber®️ has a new clever Smart Flow ™️ toddler pouch that helps make mealtimes a lot easier. With this clever spout, the baby food doesn’t just spill out of the pouch like the old days. There is a new sophisticated spout so that Angelina doesn’t just squeeze all the food out and make a huge mess!!

Now that she wants to do everything on her own, walk up the steps, put on her shoes, and feed herself- messes are almost unavoidable. Sometimes I feel like we spend more time cleaning up the meal, than putting it all together.

I know all us mothers are so busy all the time, so I’ve put together a quick list of 5 ways to make mealtime easier with a toddler:

Make sure your toddler is eating in a spot that is easy to clean up after!- keep the mess in the kitchen and keep baby in the high chair

We love this super cute and healthy option, no forks, no spoons, no plates and no clean up necessary! With this clever cap, baby food is under control. In the old days, the kids would hold onto the pouches and the baby food would go spilling out over the top and getting on all the clothes-making a huge mess!

I’ve been focusing really hard on my gym routine these last couple of months and it’s amazing how much happier I feel.

I never liked going to the gym in the past because obviously its easier to sit around and put your feed up-however, going to the gym is one of the only times in the whole day that for exactly one hour I am doing nothing else but focusing on my own mind and body.

Even when I take a shower I get interrupted a lot, which is sweet of course, but still… a moment to gather my thoughts and break a sweat does wonders for the soul.

I used to go to all the “classes” but I have put all that on hold for the moment. It was getting stressful scrambling to be there in time for the class, etc..

Now I just stick to the treadmill, plain and simple. I don’t go over board with it and never go over one hour a day.

My goal is always make sure I knock out at least 450 calories.

After the first 3o minutes I stop and stretch and take a water break and reenergize myself to kill the last half hour.

Sometimes I watch the news, other times I like to watch shows about remodeling homes, tasting food from all around the world, Seinfeld or even Friends.

Other times I like to crank up the music videos. Watching them is like a mini dance party. Each video is a few minutes and sometimes I find myself getting lost in them. Time flies.

When I want to jack up the pace and squeeze out some sweat I turn to my iPhone and put on my favorite jams.

Of course a great dress helps when you are thinking about Easter and what to wear for the fun family weekend.

When in doubt I go STRAIGHT to my favorite website StyleWe. You’ve probably heard me say this a thousand times before but they have thousands and thousands of dresses and options. For this dress I literally typed into the search button on the site: flower dress. It’s perfect for Spring and Church. Flirty, pretty and fresh. Currently sold out 🙁 But I also love this one, this oneand this one!!!

(Also great for wedding season 😉 )

Hope you are all having a fabulous week! What’s your favorite part about working out?!!

I frequently get asked questions about what my favorite baby products and accessories of all time are.

It’s true that there are products today that I would tell my younger self to invest in, and other products that I would advise against.

One product I always loved but never had, was a sophisticated baby carrier. They always seemed a little bit more pricey than the other standard baby carriers, so I settled. Now that I’ve tried the LÍLLÉ baby carrierI wish that I hadn’t waited so long.

It’s light, cute, and easy to strap on. Putting it on feels the same as putting on a backpack. The cool thing about this product (and I’m a sucker for this) is that it is multifunctional! You can carry your baby in the front OR on your back!

This is the first time that I have carried a child on my back, and I loved it.

It kept my hands free, and the load was easier for my strong back to carry than pulling down on the front of my chest.

Angelina was very comfortable back there. It was like a piggy back ride only she was much more secure.

There were even a few moments were I sort of forgot that she was back there!

Thank you so much to our favorite children’s storeOLLIE & MAVE boutique for these gorgeous outfits!! We love soft high quality kid’s clothes and these are super stylish and adorable! I mean, did you see Alexander’s swimming trunks?!! It’s almost impossible to find cute boys clothes like this!

How happy is Annabelle, reading her very own Cover of Dallas Child Magazine?!! Thank you so much to the whole entire team for making us feel so welcome! This was definitely an opportunity of a life time.

I also want to give a shout out to the MS Dallas team for this gorgeous poster of Annabelle’s cover!! It is beautiful and we love it so much! The team there feels like family, and product and service is incredible.

Thank you so much for reading along! Hope you are having a fantastic week

It’s so hard writing this right now as it’s spring break and the house is full of kids.

It’s 4pm on Thursday and I’m about to go crazy with everyone jumping around all day.

The demands never seem to stop,”I need apple juice”, “Someone isn’t sharing”, and then BOOM the whole house is a complete disaster! Sometimes it feels as though life is just going from one meal to the next.

I’m starting to feel really tired and over it.

Even when we go somewhere it’s a whole to-do getting everyone dressed, ready, fed, out the door. Then, after a full day of being out, I still have meals when we get home, tired kids, bath time and then bedtime.

The issue we seem to struggle with the most, or what makes me the most exhausted is keeping things even. There is always someone who is worried about feeling left out, or not having the same opportunity as someone else.

I’m constantly questioning my parenting skills, wondering and hoping and praying that I am able to keep everything even and fair.

I think next Spring Break we will definitely take a trip out of town, mix things up and get out of the house. I even feel itchy to see something new, be somewhere new.

Explore, refresh, restart, reset.

Anyway, Tonight is a new night and we are about to go out and grab some dinner.

I guess it’s just been a busy and eventful few days (we spent last night at the ER with Alexander-long story, I’ll elaborate another time ;))

Hope you are having a wonderful day however you choose to spend it.

On a fun note, how cute is this Tobi caramel trench coat?! Feeling so London city girl in it, and I actually like the way it looks open almost more than I like it closed! This piece feels timeless and classic, and I can dress it up or down, which I LOVE! ♥

Weaning Angelina was something I had been dreading for probably 2 months before I actually pulled it off.

As a breastfeeding mother you are so focused on making sure that you have a consistent milk supply and that your baby is well fed you don’t really put as much thought into weaning your child.

At least I never did.

I fell in love with my baby on my breast. We would cuddle up so close and snuggle. I could smell her skin, look into her eyes, fold her cruncky legs into the creases of my arms and waist.

Sadly, all good things come to an end.

I tried to give Angelina a bottle of milk when she was around 13 months or so but she spat it out and made no effort to pick it up again.

Why would she? Plastic bottle, cold milk? Her whole life was cozy with mom, a soft touch, and warm sweet milk.

I delayed weaning a few more weeks then months. Finally, I started cutting out one feed a month. So for a month I didn’t nurse her between 9 am and 9pm. She could eat food, or I would try giving her the bottle.

Next, I would cut out the 10pm, 1 am feed. One after the next.

Eventually, she wouldn’t wake up at 10pm for a feed. Then she wouldn’t wake up till 3pm. It was starting to work. I was cutting back one feed at a time, very very slowly.

The only feeds that were left were the “pre-bedtime” feed and then the “3am” and “6am” feeds.

Every few weeks I would cut one feed out.

The final feeds left were the “pre-bedtime” and the “3am” feeds.

Finally, I got her to kind of take a bottle at bedtime, eventually she would sleep trough the night.

One morning she went out for Sunday breakfast with Michael and the kids. I woke up to an empty house. No baby to nurse.

She didn’t need me anymore. She was a big girl out to brekkie with the gang. I had a choice at that momemnt. I could feel sad and miss my sweet baby. Or I could take a shower , toss that nursing bra, and put on a non-button down blouse for the first time in a year and a half!!